New guy here from Alaska. I spend 8 months of the year at sea and the other 4 at my cabin. 13 miles as the crow flies from the nearest town, 24 miles by snow machine or foot. I usually helicopter in and out. My cabin has solar, wind and generator. Water catchment system which works great when the cisterns aren't frozen solid. Snow is plentiful most of the year so that's how I get most of my water. Propane stove and refrigerator. Oil drip heater in the cabin and a wood stove in the sauna/shower. Cabin also has a nice detached workshop and detached ATV shed. Outhouse. The cabin foundation is a huge outcropping of rock which the cabin is anchored to with cable. Outstanding views of Mt. Denali and the Talkeetna Mountains. Access and bears are my only major problems besides not being able to spend all my time there.
The best part is it's paid for and the taxes are $500.00 a year. Soon as I can I'll post some photos.
Lot's of wildlife. The black bears and porcupine are my problems. They like to chew on my cabin and snow machine. I fabricated two coffee cans wired together across the handlebars to guard my snow machine grips from the bears. The seat has to be removed and kept inside or it will be the first thing to be shredded. The cabin, shower/sauna, workshop and ATV shed have stainless metal flashing along the bottom to keep the porcupine from chewing. When I leave I have to put down bear boards on the cabins wraparound deck. (plywood with nails poking up every three inches) Just replaced my plastic oil drum for the drip stove because some agile bear managed to get past my defenses and chew through it. Grizzlies just woke up, saw a few tracks while out snowshoeing last week. Always have to take a firearm with you on those trips to the outhouse...
I was hoping there would be some AK representation here. My closest full time neighbor is five miles away but my immediate neighbor is in and out with his Super Cub about once every week or two. His cabin is on the other side of the lake and behind a large hill. He brought in a LazyBoy recliner on his snow machine a month ago. Quite the feat considering the terrain. A low loaded sled is hard enough to get back in here. I may have to one up him with a sling load operation with the helicopter. (My ATV was disassembled flown in and then reassembled on site.) I do need a new couch. Lol.
I'm healing from that right now. Large scratch across my face from the tops of spruce trees. I was following his snow machine tracks up a large sidehill on my Tundra and didn't quite make the crest before sliding out of the track at 25 mph. Through the tree tops and rolled about five times. Took me three hours to recover the machine.
Welcome to the Monkey @MountainMariner !! It sounds like you have a little slice of heaven up there in AK!!
Welcome to the Monkey Tree.... Glad to have another SnowMonkey that has a similar lifestyle, to ours. If you are a Mariner, I will assume that you have knowledge of Icy Straights, Cape Spencer area.... I live on the North side of Icy Straights, about half way up Excursion Inlet..... If you happen to be running by, give us a shout on the VHF....
Yes I know where that is but we never come close to that area. I work on a 360' icebreaker, since Oct 1st 2014. Prior to that I worked in the GOM. Almost bought a cabin in Haines on Chilkat Lake.